Hi. Welcome to Epiblast! The name is partly inspired by PZ Myers famous blog, Pharyngula partly by the fact that the epiblast, a simple tissue in a developing embryo (labelled 5), gives rise, eventually, to virtually everything inside our body. It's a metaphor for how some of our simple, fundamental ideas vastly affect the other aspects of our life. This blog covers my interests; usually science, medicine, atheism, religion. I might sneak in a bit of philosophy or magic if I feel like it. I warn you, the discussion gets uncomfortable and I come to conclusions which are unconventional, maybe contradictory to yours. Don't go crying to someone if you are offended.

Stick To Your GroundSri Sri Ravi Shankar

In the village adjacent to the Art of Living ashram, a garbage truck dumps thewaste of Bangalore city on the roadside. When the village youth realised thiswas a major health hazard, they decided to stop this. When the garbage truckcame they punctured its tyres, instead of sending it away.

The garbage had to be dumped on the roadside in order for the tyres to berepaired. The purpose of the protest was to chase the truck away, but it endedup achieving quite the contrary. Often, our actions do not bring the desiredgoal. Instead of taking us towards the goal they take us away from it.

The actions of leaders such as Kancha Illiah have done more harm than good tothe cause of Dalit upliftment. It's unfortunate for India that they have takenthe issue to the US Congress. In the name of Dalit upliftment, they are pursuingtheir own personal agenda and damaging the image of the country.

If they are really interested in the betterment of the Dalits, they should workin the villages, instead of going to the US Congress. The only solution to theproblem of caste discrimination is to educate people and make them realise thatcaste by birth is not sanctioned by religion.

This can happen only through grass-roots social reforms, not through foreigninter-ventions. History abounds in instances of reformist movements to addressthe caste menace in society.

Several saints such as Basavanna from Karnataka, Narayana Guru from Kerala andSwami Dayanand Saraswati of the Arya Samaj are shining examples of people whofought caste. Instead of highlighting such reforms, these people are maligningHinduism for personal gain.

Rather than converting people to other faiths and running away from Hinduism,the most potent action would be to create Dalit purohits. Brahminism asunderstood some decades ago doesn't exist anymore. Today, there are innumerableinstances of Brahmins serving under Dalit bosses.

No doubt, there are instances of atrocities, but these are not confined to theDalit community alone. Often the members of upper castes have also been victimsof social conflict. There are several instances of sadhus being attacked.

For instance, last year in Uttar Pradesh alone, 20 sadhus were brutallymurdered. When the human consciousness is loaded with tension and mistrust,violence can erupt under any pretext. In the absence of ethics and morality,there are atrocities against women and children.Similarly, oppression of the poor is a global problem, not confined just to theDalit community. It's not just Dalits who are poor; poverty exists among peopleof all castes. Caste discrimination is a social problem and needs to beaddressed through social reforms.

Politicising the issue and presenting a distorted picture of social atrocitiesto the world community is not going to solve the problem. It will only weakennational resolve to tackle the social menace.

There are thousands of committed soldiers of justice and equality, from amongupper castes and NGOs, who are working for the betterment of Dalits. IndianParliament and state assemblies have a large representation of Dalits. By takingthe matter to the US Congress, these so-called community leaders are denigratingDalit lawmakers.

Udit Raj and Kancha will do well to learn a few things from the US. They have tolearn about national pride and progressive attitude from the Americans. Thereare three million homeless beggars in America, a little over 1% of thepopulation.

But the American media never publicises it. No blacks, native Indians andminorities have ever asked another country to interfere in their internalmatters. Caste discrimination can be solved only through reforms and educatingpeople in human values, not by creating hatred between communities.

For sure, a Hindu hater can never bring about the needed reform in the Hindusociety. Hatred will only polarise the society and create civil wars. Withoutthe whole-hearted participation of upper caste people, Dalit empowerment willremain a dream.

The younger generation of upper castes cannot be held respon-sible for thediscrimination practised by people of previous generations. If a section ofsociety starts hating the upper castes and blaming them, how can theyparticipate in the empowerment of the Dalits?

It is time to change the strategy. Sixty years ago during Ambedkar's time, whenpeople were not open to change, a revolt was essential. But today, a reform isnecessary as a revolt will not work. In the process of reform, people from allcastes and communities have to be involved.

A reform is a social phenomenon where people from all caste and communities willhave to be motivated to join. Reform can't happen out of anger or hatred; weneed a sane mind and a loving approach.